It's late January so you know what that means, Zero finally got off of his rump and put together the Negative World GOTY 2010 awards write-up! And what a year 2010 was for Nintendo fans.

On the Wii side of things, we saw what many (75% of Negative Worlders, according to our poll) believe was the best year for the Wii yet. Platformers reigned supreme, both 2D and 3D, with Super Mario Galaxy 2, Kirby's Epic Yarn, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Sonic Colors and Disney Epic Mickey hitting the Wii, among others. We also saw some of the best online games yet on the Wii, in Monster Hunter Tri and Goldeneye 007. WiiWare was strong as well, including indie darling Cave Story and a pair of BIT.TRIP games.

RPGs ruled the DS side of things, including Dragon Quest IX, Pokemon Heartgold/Soulsilver, Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, and the first new Lufia game in years. DS also saw some great point and click games in Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, and, if you are lucky enough to live in Europe, the Hotel Dusk follow-up Last Window. DSiWare was no slouch either, including some great 2D games in Cave Story and Shantae, among others.

And of course, Nintendo had a huge announcement with the 3DS, which is now only mere months away. From Kid Icarus to Resident Evil to a crazy Layton/Wright crossover and many, many more, the 3DS line-up is already looking hot. Of course we all voted on our most wanted upcoming 3DS games as well, and the results are included below.

Before getting to the awards, let me explain quickly how we do things here at the Negative World. Nominations are chosen by Negative World members, with the 6 games for each category that receive the most nominations being the games that we vote on. Polls are opened for a couple of weeks or so, and all members are allowed to vote once and once only. For each category, members can make up to 3 choices; the 1st choice is worth 5 points, the 2nd is worth 3 points, and the 3rd is worth 1 point. At the end the points are tallied up and winners are declared. It's as simple as that. So let's get to it.

(Hold onto your butts...)

DSiWare Most Wanted

The nominations are…

ClayFighter: Sculptor's Cut- You guys remember ClayFighter, right? After all of this time it has returned!

Ghostwire- Use your DSi to hunt real life ghosts. In the real world. How bizarre.

Glory Days: Tactical Defense- A military tower defense game under the Glory Days umbrella.

Space Invaders for the win! The first two games were great and we expect more greatness from the DSiWare game. Ghostwire takes 2nd place with its unique ghost hunting mechanics, and Clayfighter proves that nostalgia weighs heavily on the minds of gamers.

I'm a bit surprised that Mighty Milky Way didn't score higher, as WayForward tends to get some love around here. And Glory Days and Spirit Hunters bring up the rear. Moving on!

DSiWare GOTY

The nominations are…

Aura-Aura Climber- NST vertical platformer for only 200 points. What a deal!

Cave Story- The indie darling Cave Story is a bit like a Metroid game. With rabbits.

Dark Void Zero- The console game may have sucked, but the DSiWare game was actually pretty solid.

Ivy the Kiwi? Mini- Half the length of the cartridge game at one quarter of the cost. Makes sense to me.

Shantae: Risky's Revenge- WayForward goes back to one of their beloved 2D franchises for a DSiWare sequel.

Trajectile- Action puzzle game from Q-Games, best known for their iterations in the Art Style series.

Shantae easily takes the win, besting the rest by over 30 points. Cave Story finishes a bit further back, perhaps hampered a bit by the fact that many Nintendo fans already played the Wii version. Dark Void Zero takes third, which makes three 2D platformers in the top three DsiWare games of the year.

Ivy the Kiwi? Mini, Trajectile and Aura-Aura Climber fight it out hard for the top runner-up spot, not seeming to care that they all missed the winner's circle.

DS Most Wanted

The nominations are…

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective- From the creator of the Phoenix Wright series comes a unique point and click puzzle game where you play as a dead man.

Monster Tale- One part platformer, one part monster raising sim, all kinds of awesomeness. From the developers of one of my personal favorites, Henry Hatsworth.

Okamiden- The original PS2/Wii game didn't get as much respect as it should have, maybe the series will find more success on the DS?

Pokémon Black/White- The fifth generation of Pokémon games, including over 150 brand new pokémon.

Professor Layton and the Specter's Flute- This prequel to the Layton series takes us back to when Luke and the Professor first met.

Radiant Historia- Travel through time and space and into parallel worlds in this sweet looking RPG!

Okami was one of the greatest Zelda clones ever made, and Okamiden takes our spot as the most wanted DS game at Negative World. Pokémon Black and White follow closely behind, and Layton shows that after three games we still want more.

The recently released (sorry for being so slow putting these awards together!) Ghost Trick isn't too far behind, while Monster Hunter and Radiant Historia aren't quite as high up on the minds of Negative Worlders.

In yet another super close race, Dragon Quest IX pulls ahead of the rest to become the Negative World DS GOTY, showing that old school mechanics with a fresh twist can still find a place in the hearts of modern gamers. Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver finish close behind, and Professor Layton, as always, makes another good showing.

Although they fell into another tier of scoring entirely, Super Scribblenauts, Picross 3D, and 999 all fought very hard to take the first spot of the “not quites”, but Super Scribblenauts pulls it off. Frankly, I think 999 would be getting much more love if anyone was actually playing it.

3DS Most Wanted

The nominations are…

Kid Icarus: Uprising- The first Kid Icarus game in a long, long time eschews its 2D platformer roots to focus more on shooting and action.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D- Does this really need an explanation? One of the most beloved games of all-time... in 3D!

Mario Kart 3DS- Not too much is known about this game yet, other than the fact that it is a new Mario Kart. Then again, what else do you need to know?

Paper Mario 3DS- Paper Mario is like real Mario, except made out of paper. Also, it's an RPG.

Pilotwings Resort- Nintendo's flight simulation series returns for the first time since the Nintendo 64.

Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney- Is this for real? Yes, yes it is. Possibly the greatest idea for a crossover game in the existence of all eternity.

A tie! I love getting ties. After a hard fought battle and a lot of back and forth, both Ocarina of Time and Kid Icarus end with exactly 109 points each. One old, one new, and both equally wanted here at the Negative World. Paper Mario 3DS fought a good fight, but ended up slightly behind.

Of the rest, Mario Kart DS also put up some good numbers, and although it finished in fourth, it wasn't super far behind the others. Pilotwings finishes a bit further back, and I am very disappointed that the voters here didn't see the pure brilliance of the Layton/Ace Attorney crossover.

WiiWare Most Wanted

The nominations are…

BIT.TRIP FLUX- The sixth and final BIT.TRIP game goes back to where it all started. Everything is in flux.

La-Mulana- 2D platformer with an Indiana Jones feel. And if it sounds familiar, yes, it was one of our most wanted WiiWare games last year as well.

We love ourselves some BIT.TRIP around here, and FLUX is our most wanted WiiWare game of 2011. Retro City Rampage follows close behind, again proving the pull of nostalgia, edging out NightSky in a super close race.

La-Mulana, Noitu Love 2, and Motoheroz fall far outside of the winner's circle, although some of the recently released videos of Motoheroz may be convincing Negative Worlders to take another look.

WiiWare GOTY

The nominations are…

And Yet It Moves- A physics based platformer that lets you change your perspective of the world... literally.

Art Style: light trax- Take the general concept of Tron and pare it down to an Art Style form and that's what you get from light trax.

BIT.TRIP RUNNER- The fourth game in the BIT.TRIP series combines non-stop platforming with music that will blow your mind.

Cave Story- Pretty much the same game as the DsiWare game (although the WiiWare game came first!) which is the same game as the PC game. This is definitely a good thing.

Fluidity- One of the few Nintendo published WiiWare titles, Fluidity lets you take control of the various forms of water to solve puzzles in a meaty, Metroid-esque adventure.

Mega Man 10- If you have played Mega Man 9 you know what to expect. Or 2, or 3, or... well you get the point.

It was a very close match, but BIT.TRIP RUNNER never stopped running and ends with our WiiWare GOTY. That's a WiiWare sweep for the BIT.TRIP series. Cave Story also pulls a ton of love, and Mega Man 10 finishes in a very solid third place.

Fluidity may be a runner-up, but it still makes a great showing, and perhaps it could have finished in the top three were it released a bit earlier in the year. Art Style: light trax and And Yet It Moves prove to be a little bit too niche to pull enough votes.

Wii Most Wanted

The nominations are

de Blob 2- de Blob arrived on the Wii as one of the most beloved 3rd party titles, and the sequel promises to be even more goodness.

The Last Story- Sakaguchi's take on the Final Fantasy formula? Or something entirely brand new? We can't wait to find out.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword- It's the next Zelda game. What else needs to be said?

Mario Sports Mix- A nice mix of pick up and play games developed by the first company you think of when you think sports: Squarenix. Wait... what?

Rhythm Heaven- The zaniness of WarioWare meets the rhythm genre in the sequel to the excellent DS title.

Xenoblade- Years ago Nintendo bought out MonolithSoft, in order to have them develop a series of games that would never make it to North America. False. (We hope.)

Big surprise, no? The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is, of course, our most wanted Wii game by a large margin. The Last Story and Xenoblade round out the top three, showing that Negative Worlders are dying for some big RPGs (now bring these games to the West, Nintendo!)

Neither de blob 2, Rhythm Heaven, nor Mario Sports Mix could stand with the big dogs. Although, say what you want, Rhythm Heaven is one of my most wanted Wii games.

Wii GOTY

The nominations are…

Donkey Kong Country Returns- Who would have thought that Retro Studios' first non-Metroid Prime game would be a DKC title? Yet they rose to the challenge.

GoldenEye 007- A remake mostly in name only of the beloved N64 title, Goldeneye 007 manages to do a lot right on its own nonetheless.

Metroid: Other M- Team Ninja and Metroid? Questionable dialogue aside (the baby!) the team has created one of the most unique Metroid games in a long time.

Monster Hunter Tri- Vast and meaty, Tri manages to be that rare gem, a game that is as excellent single player as it is online.

Sin & Punishment: Star Successor- The sequel that no one ever expected to be made takes everything the original did and does it that much better.

Super Mario Galaxy 2- The sequel that no one ever expected to be... oh wait, I just said that. What the hell, it's another Mario Galaxy game, no explanation needed.

And for the second year in a row, a Mario game runs off with the Negative World Wii GOTY award. I can't say Super Mario Galaxy 2 doesn't fully deserve it, from start to finish this game is pure gaming bliss. Retro Studios stepped up to deliver yet another stunning game in Donkey Kong Country Returns, and Monster Hunter Tri took our third spot, which shouldn't surprise to anyone considering it is the only game with a 100+ pages and still counting thread here at the Negative World.

Metroid: Other M is a bit of a divisive game on most forums, and it falls neatly in the middle here as well. Both Goldeneye 007 and Sin & Punishment struggle to gain points, a bit of a shame in my eyes considering how excellent Star Successor is.

And that's that. Thus ends the Negative World GOTY 2010 awards!

Looking forward, 2011 could potentially be a slow year for the Wii, although we are all hoping and praying that Nintendo brings over some of its bigger games to the West. And despite the imminent release of a new handheld platform, the DS is still pulling in tons of great games. Speaking of the 3DS, which game will be the first to walk away with a Negative World 3DS GOTY award? Will it be one of our two most wanted, Ocarina of Time 3D and Kid Icarus: Uprising? Or will another game steal the show? I don't know about you guys, but I'm very much looking forward to seeing what the 3DS has in store.

PS. I'd like to take this moment to thank all of the members of the Negative World for making this site the best place on the Internet for Nintendo fans to hang out in. And if you're reading this and not a member yet, seriously... what are you waiting for? You can sign up right now and it won't take but two minutes. What have you got to lose?

I was going to submit a correction for DQIX stating that the correct title is "Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies", but then I realized that "Protectors of the Sky" must be the European title, no?

Thanks Zero for putting all that together, awesome job!

I think 2011 is going to be rad, might be a little slow for Wii but the 3DS will more than make up for it!

Wow, a great post zero. Thanks for writing it all up. Some great games won this year. I'm happy to see all the Mario and Zelda love still. The classics don't quit. Plus Gaijin Games got respect as well.

@GelatinousEncore I suppose by allowing everyone to vote it becomes a lot tougher for niche games to win. On the other hand, the BIT.TRIP games seem to get a ton more love here than they do on some other forums.

@deathly_hallows Not sure how I missed that, but I changed it in the awards. Although we do have a ton of European members here, we try to keep it consistent by using the North American titles for games whenever possible.

@Abdooooo It was a tie! Ocarina of Time 3D and Kid Icarus tied. But yeah, I see your point, personally I voted for 1. Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney 2. Paper Mario 3DS 3. Pilotwings Resort. So my top 3 all lost, lol.

@casper884 Yeah, weird that Kirby didn't make the nomination cut. I also noticed that, despite Dragon Quest IX winning DS GOTY, Dragon Quest X wasn't even nominated for most wanted Wii game. But I think that is in part because a lot of people just don't expect to see it hit the Wii, at least, not anytime soon.